The Return of The Prodigal Son
by can-you-imagine
Summary: When Maka gets injured on a mission in Monaco, to help her Soul ends up at a place he thought he'd never find himself, and thrust into a world he thought had abandoned him. But with Maka by his side, he begins to see that it's not so bad after all.
1. Chapter 1

A/N: Born out of my overactive mind and a boring physics class came the idea for a multi chaptered fic about Soul and Maka. So, read, review, and tell me what you think.

I know it's short, but this is just the intro. Following chapters should be longer and up soon. SMILES!

Disclaimer: I do not own Soul Eater, the Principality of Monaco, or Band-Aid® brand bandages.

**Chapter One: The Intro (**With the cliffe ending!**)**

0o0o0o0

They both had taken injuries. This week, chaos reigned in lovely Monaco, in the old fort of Monaco-Ville (1), in the form of a nasty former butcher who enjoyed taking the livers out of young women. And unlike a certain professor, this monster didn't stitch them back up and send them on their merry way. So Maka and Soul were sent to take care of the Kishin egg. The fight was tough, as The Phantom Butcher, as the people of Monaco were calling it, was crafty, and had retained enough of it's cognitive ability to know that someone would be coming after it. It was prepared, and rather unfortunately, quite large and vicious.

With one final stroke of Soul's scythe, the Kishin egg fell. Soul transformed and after consuming the soul, turned to the dazed Maka.

"Maka, are you alright?" Soul asked urgently. Maka blinked up at Soul. "I'm alright, I thinkk..." she said suddenly sagging against Soul, revealing a long slash of red across her back and shoulder.

"Oh shit," Soul said, looking around. The city of Monaco closed up early, and this time there was no Spirit and Stein coming to save them. There was only one option and Soul didn't like it. "Shit, shit, shit."

0o0o0o0

Soul moved quickly through the streets. If anyone had been awake and peering through their windows, they would have been utterly perplexed at the sight of a familiar looking boy carrying an unconscious girl, but not necessarily because of the girl, but more likely thinking: _'What the hell is he doing back here?'_

Soul finally reached his destination, a large, antique house overlooking much of the city. He rested Maka's feet on the ground and with one hand clutching her waist, pounded on the door. A few minutes passed and Soul heard someone muttering behind the door, _"__Qui est ici à deux dans la matinée?__" _(2) The door swung open revealing a middle-aged woman in a flowing nightgown and dressing gown with graying hair. "What, what do you wan-" she broke off at the sight of Soul. "Soul?" she whispered, with hope in her eyes.

"Hey, Ma," Soul said, panting. "Got any band-aids?"

0o0o0o0

Well, that's chapter one. A few clarifications:

1, I am taking some artistic license with Monaco-Ville, which is the old fortified town of Monaco. Bare with me my mistakes.

2, I used a translation website for my French translation. My English meaning: "Who could be here at two in the morning?"


	2. Chapter 2

A/N: Some words before you begin. I wrote the majority of this in school last week and over the weekend, while reading, came to the awareness that my writing from a specific POV sucks. So in the latter half I tried to do better. Tell me if you notice any specific differences, good or bad.

The next chapter will come slowly, as I have just discovered AVATAR, and am in the middle of standardized testing, so I'm very distracted. No worries, this will continue, as I really want to get to the middle of the story so I can write a specific scene.

A note on the pronunciation of Names:

Marcella = mar-SEH-luh

Henri = ahn-REE

Thea = Thee-ah (Th not sharp like in **Th**e. More like in **Th**eology.)

French translations at bottom.

NOTE: Updated 1/6/12. Thanks to Tomboy209 for correcting my French (mon cher to ma chere). Other changes were minor, punctuation ect.

Disclaimer: I DO NOT OWN SOUL EATER.

**Chapter Two: Maka gets healed and Thea arrives**

0o0o0o0

Marcella Evans didn't waste any time. She turned on the hall light and hollered for her widowed brother Henri to fetch a doctor. She took one side of Maka and helped her son carry his other half to one of the guest rooms.

"What happened?" Marcella demanded.

"Kishin egg that's been killing young women and taking their livers," Soul supplied panting against the windowsill.

"_Le boucher fantome? _Well, good, Thea will be pleased. I'll contact her, tell her she needs to come back."

Marcella swept out of the room with efficiency as Henri and the doctor entered.

"Soul," Henri greeted his nephew, clasping his shoulder. Soul tried to smile, "Uncle Henri."

The doctor finished setting up her bag and shooed the menfolk out of the room, ushering Marcella in, closing the door on Soul and Henri.

"I suppose that there's only one thing to do now," Henri said leaning against the wall in a familiar pose. Soul looked up at him questioningly. "Pace."

0o0o0o0

It had been a long night. The doctor had worked long into the morning cleaning and stitching up the three long scratches that stretched around from the bottom of Maka's shoulder blade to where her arm met her chest.

"She'll be just fine. The scratches weren't very deep so they shouldn't scar much. The more worrying thing is the poison I believe was on the creature's claws. But I've administered an antidote, so there shouldn't be any permanent damage. She'll be weak for a few days, so make her take it easy." The doctor finished her instructions and departed, her blue and purple dressing gown flowing behind her.

Marcella followed the doctor out of Maka's sickroom and looked to Soul who, unable to pace anymore, had collapsed against the wall. "I've put her in an old nightgown of Thea's. She should be comfortable now. You can go sit with her if you want."

Marcella helped her son stand up and engulfed him in a hug. Soul stood still before melting into his mother's warm embrace, burying his face in her neck. "Mom…" he whispered wearily, a tone bordering on broken. Marcella stroked his hair making soothing noises. "It'll be alright. It'll be just fine."

0o0o0o0

The mid-morning sunlight tickled Maka's eyelids. Her nose twitched, like a cat's does before it sneezes. Her eyes opened with a sigh. She tried to roll onto one side and cringed.

"You shouldn't do that _Mademoiselle_." Maka turned her head and saw a dark haired Frenchman busy by the opposite wall.

"Bonjour. I am Henri, Soul's uncle. You are very weak. You shouldn't move around much."

Maka blinked wearily. "Where's Soul?" Henri pointed to the deep windowsill, where Soul slept, crunched up like a cat in the sun.

"Rest for now. Thea will be here soon, and good things with her. Sleep now, _ma chere_, dream good dreams…" Maka was carried off into dreamland on the wings of the voice of Henri, the storyteller.

0o0o0o0

Soul awoke to a hand over his mouth and a hand in his hair, tugging him out of the room. When the door closed and Soul straightened, he saw his assailant. Thea, 5'2", blue eyes, and the same white hair that many members of the Evans family inherited. And she was smiling. "Soul…" she tugged him into a hug. Soul smiled back. "Took you long enough." She pushed him back, fake affronted.

"I'll have you know, I was in Bruges when your mother called me at two in the morning telling me to come back. Come back! When she told me to leave not two weeks ago. I got on a train, then another train, then another, and another, until I was back." She held her cousin at arms length and looked him up and down. "You look well. Now I'm starving, let's eat."

Thea led him to the kitchen to get plates of food from Marcella and then continued to the patio. Soul spied her customary bag and green coat in a heap by the kitchen door. Soul watched his cousin and noted the changes in her since he saw her last (which was technically 8 months ago over video chat when she was in an internet cafe in Prague). She wore a blue, short sleeved plain dress, designed to not draw attention. Her customary white blonde hair was tinted with some slightly darker strands, inherited from her mother. Smiling he said to her, "You look good Thea."

Thea looked up at Soul and smiled before leaning forward to eat. "What's her name, your partner?" Thea asked.

"Maka, Maka Albarn."

Thea nodded approvingly. "She's pretty," She said with a sly smile.

Soul smiled softly towards his plate. "I know," he paused, deliberating. "Thea, what do you see?"

Thea had a special ability. She could see how two people's souls were connected, what their relationship to another person was. How protective one person was of another, the hatred, longing, love, desire, between two people, and especially, she saw unrequited feelings. This caused Thea to be a bit of a matchmaker.

Thea smiled knowingly. "Comfortability. Dependency. She is just as protective of you as you are of her."

Soul nodded. "I know. I'm afraid that her protective instincts are gonna get her killed one day."

Thea's smile never faltered, that smile that said _'ha ha, I know more than you!'_. "However dangerous a position she may put herself in, she will always have you to protect her."

Soul placed his elbows on the table, gesturing frustratedly. "But she won't let me protect her!"

Thea leaned forward, placing a hand on Soul's arm. "So you have to make her see that it's your job to protect her. Make her see, you're good at that."

A shadow fell over Soul, and Marcella placed a plate on the glass-topped table and sat down next to Soul with an _ufff_.

"Where's Henri?" Thea asked.

"Out. Somewhere. Docks maybe," Marcella answered briskly. The three sat and ate. "So, Soul, how have you been lately?"

Soul swallowed and placed his fork and knife by his plate. "Good. Busy. It's- um- It's been a tough while."

Marcella surveyed her son. Still chewing, head low, Thea looked between her aunt and cousin. Sensing that they needed a private moment, she silently gathered up her plate and went to the kitchen.

"I am assuming you weren't planning to drop by while you were in Monaco?" Marcella's tone was motherly, questioning, and slightly scolding.

Soul looked at his plate, avoiding his mother's eyes. "I didn't want to see dad."

Marcella nodded, accepting Soul's words as a viable excuse. "He's in Vienna with Wes and Thea's father. Conducting."

Soul looked at his mother. "You two didn't get a divorce while I was gone, did you?"

Marcella laughed, "No. There were some arguments, but nothing enough to end a marriage. Between you, Wes, and Thea, and your father's conducting in Vienna, and my interests here, it just didn't make sense to all live together. Monaco will always be open to you, _mon cher_, you know that."

Soul looked at his mother and smiled. He was truly glad to see her, even under the not so good circumstances.

"Now, I just have to tell you this story of what Thea did the last time she was in Paris. She wouldn't want me telling you, but it's too hilarious not to tell." And so they sat, quietly making amends.

0o0o0o0

Elsewhere in the Evans house in Monaco, Thea was making Tea. The muses told her that Maka would wake soon and the best thing for flesh wounds of any kind, was Thea's special restorative tea, a mixture of herbs and bark and the like that she learned to make while in Sicily. It tasted nasty, but it got the job done.

Tea carefully loaded a tray with the hot kettle, the teapot, the tea mixture, and a mug, and carried to it Maka's room. Opening the door Thea saw that Maka was just starting to stir. She set her tray down and began to unload it.

0o0o0o0

Maka woke to a soft clattering of Porcelain. A fragment of a memory came back to her and told her that she was injured and not to move much. She slowly opened her eyes and saw a young woman doing something with a kettle. When the woman heard Maka shift she turned and smiled brightly. "_Bonjour ma soeur,_ how do you feel?"

Maka tested her range of movement. "Sore, achy, my shoulder is killing me."

The mystery woman smiled, keeping her eyes on her task. "That's how you should feel considering you got beat up and cut up by a kishin egg. Don't worry though, I have just the thing." She set the lid on the teapot and helped Maka sit up some on the voluminous pillows.

Maka watched in trepidation as her mystery nursemaid poured a nasty smelling liquid into a blue mug painted in gold with the scene of a Roman feast. She handed it to Maka, keeping on hand on the mug to steady it and using the other to restrict the movement of Maka's injured arm. "Now drink up." She was watching expectantly, so Maka took a sip and grimaced at the horrid taste.

Maka's mystery nursemaid laughed, "I know, absolutely awful, isn't it? But it will take the ache out of your bones, that's for sure." She sat on the edge of the bed and Maka noted that she had similar colored hair to Soul. "Now, where are my manners, I am Thea, cousin to your Soul."

Maka gave a shuddering smile as she finished the last of the drink. "Maka Albarn, Soul's partner." She handed back the mug and lay back down on the pillows.

"If you haven't guessed, you are currently staying at the House of Marcella Evans, matriarch of the Evans clan. The patriarch is currently in Vienna composing. _Monsieur _Henri, is Marcella's widowed brother. And Soul himself, when I last saw him, was eating something and talking with his mother. I'm glad that they're getting a chance to talk, after all this time." Thea spoke with a light European accent, a product of her transient childhood.

Thea stood and placed her tea paraphernalia back on the tray. "I'll put this back in the kitchen, and then I want your injuries looked at before you go back to sleep."

Maka groaned tiredly. "Not another doctor?"

Thea smiled, "No doctor, just me. I'll change your bandages, and help you wash up while I'm at it."

Maka blushed. "That's alright, you don't have to."

Thea's smile was insistent. "It is fine. You're too weak to take a shower or bath, and your stitched won't let you anyway. We're both girls, so you have nothing to be embarrassed about. I'll be back." And with that she dashed out of the room.

0o0o0o0

Maka was just drifting back asleep when she heard a knock on the door. "Come in," she called sleepily.

The door opened to admit Thea with bandages, some linen cloths, and a basin of water, followed by Henri with another basin.

"How are you feeling _Mademoiselle_?"

Maka gave a brief smile. "A bit better."

Henri smiled, "That is good to hear. I'll leave you ladies to it."

Thea walked over to Maka and helped her sit up. "Now, lets get that nightgown off. It's one of mine, in case you were wondering, Marcella must have borrowed it." Thea helped Maka take off the nightgown and had her hold a sheet up to her chest while Thea carefully undid the bandages from Maka's wound. Maka tried not to wince as Thea did so, and felt relieved when she was done. "Looks alright," Thea muttered to herself. "Now I'm going to rinse it, this should feel cooling, so tell me if it doesn't."

'_The water must have something in it'_ Maka thought as Thea did up new bandages, the addition not sticking to her skin or irritating it. Thea continued, moving Maka's hair out of the way and gently washed the dusty and sweaty skin of her back. _'This is very relaxing...'_ Maka thought sleepily as Thea moved to washing her arms. She handed Maka a damp cloth saying, "I'll let you wash the essentials," before moving to her legs. Maka wasn't sure when Thea had started humming, but the soft noise helped to still Maka's thoughts.

When they were entirely finished, Thea helped Maka into a white camisole and underwear, and then a nightgown that split up the side. Maka was practically asleep before Thea was finished.

0o0o0o0

Soul was waiting when Thea came out.

"Can I go talk to her now?" Soul asked.

Thea shook her head, "She just fell asleep, you should leave her be." Soul huffed and kicked the wall.

Thea looked back at Soul from walking down the hall. "You can bring her food when she wakes up, I promise. Now come, I need your help with something and then you should call your people at the DWMA." Soul followed her grumbling.

0o0o0o0

French translations:

Le boucher fantome- The phantom butcher

Mademoiselle- miss

mon cher- my dear (masc.)

ma chere- me dear (fem.)

Bonjour- hello

ma soeur- my sister

monsieur- sir

And that's it! Alert me if you notice any glaring mistakes. I hope you enjoyed it! –CYI


	3. Chapter 3

A/N: Well. Here is the next chapter of The Return of the Prodigal Son. I apologize for the tardiness, but really I haven't been thinking or watching Soul Eater lately. A few weeks before school ended (which is two weeks ago Monday) I saw Avatar for the first time, which is where my head went. Currently it's a mixture of Avatar: The Last Airbender (The TV show), Star Trek 2009 (The most recent movie), with a smattering of Harry Potter and Real Life. BUT, I will NOT ABANDON THIS STORY! I'm still excited about writing it, but I'm also a little more excited about two other stories I've been writing. Thanks for all the supportive reviews, you all are AWESOME! Without further ado: the Story!

Disclaimer: I don't own.

NOTE: 1/6/12 I know it's been forever since I've updated. I just haven't been in an anime mood. But this story will be continued eventually. -CYI

**Chapter Three: Nagging and Music**

0o0o0o0

On the upstairs balcony of a small café in Monte Carlo sat Soul and Thea. Beside them were a number of bags full of groceries. Soul was twitching with impatience. He was eager to get back to the house so that he could be there when Maka woke up.

"Can we go already?" he nearly growled. Thea finished her drink and pulled out money for the bill. She put it on the table and stood.

"Now we can go." Thea and Soul picked up the few bags and left the restaurant. Placing them in the saddlebags of the light motorcycle that belonged to her, Thea clucked at state of the bike next to hers.

"You may drive, if you like," Thea offered graciously, motioning her cousin toward the vehicle. They got on and Soul sped them off between the pedestrians towards Monaco-Ville.

As soon as they arrived home Soul ran inside, leaving Thea to deal with the bags. She shook her head at him. "He's lucky I love him. _Abruti_."

Thea took the bags and walked up the cobblestone path that led to the patio attached to the kitchen.

"_Bonjour, tante_ Marcella," Thea greeted as stepped over the worn stone threshold. Marcella was filling a pitcher with water from the tap over the sink.

"Hello, my dear. You'll cook tonight, right?" Marcella was known for many things, her cooking not included.

"Of course," Thea smiled wearily. She didn't mind truly, as the only other option was ordering from the overpriced tourist restaurant up the street, but still it would be nice for a break. Well, an offer for a break, as she probably wouldn't take it anyway. Ever since the grandparents died, Soul left, and everything changed to be as it was now, she had embraced her place in _la famille_.

0o0o0o0

Half an hour later, Soul carefully carried a bowl of broth to Maka's room. Thea had immediately started making the soup when she returned home, and now she had started making dinner for the rest of the family.

"Hey Maka," Soul said softly. Maka yawned and smiled sleepily. "Hey Soul."

"I brought you some food. Well, broth." He placed the bowl on the side table.

"You didn't make it, did you?" Maka asked warily.

"Ha, no," Soul answered. "Thea did. She's a much better cook than I am."

Soul helped her sit up and lifted a spoon full of broth to her lips.

Maka glared. "I can feed myself."

Soul snorted. "With that shoulder, not likely."

Maka rolled her eyes. "It's not as bad as it looks."

Soul sighed frustratedly. "Maka, will you just shut up and let me take care of you?"

Startled, Maka looked at her partner. She now saw the tenseness in his shoulders, the bags under his eyes. She realized that yes, this was his family's house, and yes, he hadn't spoken to his family in a while, and yes, Maka was injured _again_, and hmmmm, that might be taking a toll on him and his already limited sanity. She sighed and allowed him to feed her.

"Have you eaten?" She asked. He nodded. "Have you slept?" Again he nodded. "Where?" Now he shrugged. "Around."

"Soul," Maka nagged. "You need to get some decent sleep. In a bed. Preferably one with blankets and pillows."

"I'll sleep tonight," Soul promised. "And I won't let anyone wake me up until long past sunrise. Happy?" Maka snapped her teeth at him.

0o0o0o0

Soul stood at the doorway of his old bedroom. Despite his absence, it lay unchanged since his last visit. It wasn't dusty though; Thea must have gotten to it. He'd have to thank her. The four-poster bed was made up, the covers turned back recently. Thea again. He walked forward to the piano under the window, the light from the sunset pouring in. He lifted the cover and lightly ran his fingers across the keys. He took a deep breath, let it out, and began to play.

0o0o0o0

Uncle Henri was in the garden planting flowers when he heard the soft piano notes flowing through the house and out the door. He paused when he heard it and listened closer. When he recognized the tune he smiled and hummed along as he continued to plant.

0o0o0o0

Thea was sweeping the patio when she heard the familiar tune make it's way to her. She smiled softly and leaned on her broom, closing her eyes and swaying softly. She stood and out her broom aside. Turning, she curtsied to her invisible, absent partner and began to dance.

0o0o0o0

Maka was asleep when the treasured music made its way to her room, but it still reached her mind, and through the thick haze of sleep, she smiled.

0o0o0o0

Lastly the music found it's way to Marcella's study. When Marcella heard the first strains she stopped writing and lifted her head. Tears sprang to her eyes as she recognized the melody. It was the waltz that Soul had played for her once on Mother's Day. It was one of Thea's favorite waltzes, she knew, and it was her absolute favorite. She placed her pen down and stood up slowly. Hesitantly, she walked out of her study and followed the lilting strains to her son's room. She stopped in the doorway as the song came to a close. Soul didn't move and no one spoke for a minute.

"I'm sorry I left," Soul said, breaking the silence. "Well, not really, I'm happy with my life now, but—" He took a breath, and finished thickly, "I'm sorry I didn't say goodbye."

Without speaking Marcella moved to sit next to her son on the piano bench. She put an arm around his shoulders, hugging him closer to her, and the two watched the sun disappear behind the horizon out the window.

0o0o0o0

Wow, that was much more intense than I expected. And longer. The two songs I imagined for the song Soul was playing are the waltz from the movie The Cat Returns, called Katzen Blut (just look up The Cat Returns- Waltz on youtube for the song, the Sims video has it), and the other the Princess Diaries Waltz. I hope you enjoy my words, and I hope I didn't disappoint anyone after the long wait.

SMILES! CYI

VOCAB!

Abruti- Moron

Bonjour- hello

Tante- Aunt

La famille- the family


End file.
